The Dark Summer Color Palette

What is a Dark Summer?

Dark Summer is the deepest of the three Summer subpalettes. Your undertone is cool and rosy, like every Summer, and your colors are muted rather than bright. What sets you apart is depth: your coloring can carry darker, richer shades than other Summers.

That makes Dark Summer the elegant, moody end of Summer: deep rose, navy, burgundy, charcoal blue and plum. It sits next to Dark Winter, which shares the depth but is clearer and more intense. Dark Summer is the softer of the two.

Common Dark Summer traits

These are patterns, not rules. Plenty of Dark Summers break one or two of them.

• Hair: medium to dark cool or ash brown. Silver often comes in as a soft salt-and-pepper.
• Eyes: cool brown, deep gray-blue, gray-green or soft hazel.
• Skin: anything from fair to deep, with a cool, rosy or cool-olive cast.
• The black test: black looks a little severe. Navy looks just as polished and kinder.
• The pastel test: pale pastels on their own wash you out. They work better layered with a deeper color.

The Dark Summer palette

The six colors above are your core palette. Around them, your wider palette looks like this:

• Neutrals: navy, charcoal blue, slate, cool taupe, plum-gray and soft white.
• Accents: deep rose, burgundy, deep plum, raspberry, cool berry, dusty teal and spruce.
• Lights for layering: soft rose, dusty blue and soft white. Pair them with a deeper color near your face.

Colors a Dark Summer should avoid

Your colors are cool, deep and softened. The ones that work against you are warm, neon or stark:

• Warm earth tones: orange, rust, mustard and camel.
• Neon and very bright colors. They overpower muted coloring.
• Pure black near the face. Swap it for navy, charcoal blue or deep plum.
• Warm yellow gold right at the face, especially in a high-shine finish.

Dark Summer clothes: building a wardrobe that works

Dark Summer colors are deep and cool, so they mix easily and look polished together. Start here:

1. Pick three neutrals to build around, such as navy, charcoal blue and slate.
2. Add two or three accent colors for tops and scarves, such as deep rose, burgundy and plum.
3. Choose rich but matte fabrics. Wool crepe, cashmere, velvet, matte silk and cool-toned suede suit you.
4. Keep prints tonal. Medium-contrast patterns in berry, navy and plum work better than stark black-and-white graphics.
5. Choose a dark, cool denim wash. Deep indigo or charcoal denim works better than faded or yellowed washes.

Dark Summer makeup

Aim for cool, rich and softly defined.

• Lips: deep rose, berry, plum, raspberry and mauve.
• Cheeks: rose and plum-rose.
• Eyes: plum, slate, charcoal and cool taupe. Navy or charcoal liner instead of black.
• Brows: cool medium or dark brown. Avoid warm, reddish brow products.

Jewelry, metals and hair color

Metals: silver, white gold, pewter and oxidized silver. Rose gold can work in small doses. Gray pearls, amethyst and garnet suit the palette.

Hair color: cool brown, ash brown and deep mocha tend to work. Golden, copper and warm caramel tones fight a cool undertone. A soft salt-and-pepper often suits Dark Summer coloring well. A colorist can tell you what works for your hair.

Dark Summer vs. Dark Winter

Both palettes are cool and deep, so they're easy to mix up. The difference is chroma: Dark Winter is clearer and more intense, while Dark Summer is softer. Try these side-by-side tests in daylight, with no makeup on:

• Navy vs. black. If navy looks better and black looks severe, lean Dark Summer. If black looks crisp, lean Dark Winter.
• Deep rose vs. fuchsia. If deep rose looks rich and fuchsia looks loud, lean Dark Summer.
• Soft white vs. optic white. If soft white looks better, lean Dark Summer.

If deep plum feels too heavy and soft navy is plenty, look at True Summer. Still stuck? That's normal. It's exactly what the free quiz and the photo analysis are built to sort out.

Dark Summer after 40

Your rosy undertone is permanent. As hair silvers, contrast may soften, and some Dark Summers find the lighter end of the palette, like soft rose, dusty blue and slate, starts looking easier near the face. Your deepest navy and burgundy can move to a coat or trousers. Read more in Does your color season change with age?